A lovely lunch at the Alte Kunst in Tübingen

After a morning spent fretting over the immediate future, Bill enticed me to get dressed and come into the light... the light of Tübingen, that is.  He wanted to go out for lunch in Tübingen, one of our favorite local cities.  I was game, so I got dressed, sprayed on some sunscreen, and got in the car.  It was a good thing I put on the sunscreen.  More on that later.

We parked the car at our favorite garage, walked into town, and passed a rather paunchy guy wearing a funny tank top that read "Train harder than I do."  We wound up stopping at the Alte Kunst restaurant.  To be honest, I had been wanting to stop there for years.  Last time we ate at the Alte Kunst in Tübingen was in 2009, right after Michael Jackson died.  I knew we were going to be moving soon and remember sitting outside eating dorade as I listened to Michael Jackson's biggest hits on the radio.  I was kind of in a foul mood that day because I didn't want to move and was really pissed off that we had to go a year early.  But I do remember the dorade was good.

Today, the outdoor seating at Alte Kunst was mostly full, save for one table in the sun.  We took that table, although we could have sat inside.  I was really glad I had applied sunscreen, because for the first half hour or so of our visit, I was getting a bit grilled.  I am a very white person and the sun doesn't agree with me for too long.

Fortunately, the folks behind us left, so we were able to claim their more desirable table under an umbrella.  Not only was I no longer grilling in the sun; I was also spared from having to see my reflection in the store window across the street.  This was a good thing, since I ordered dorade again.  Dorade is pretty healthy as entrees go, but it usually comes out on a big platter and who wants to watch themselves eating from that?

Bill enjoys the sun while he decides on lunch.

A pretty table!

And today's special!

I went with dorade, which was perfectly grilled with potatoes with just enough salt.  The fish was stuffed with a bay leaf and fresh lemon.  I have had dorade at a number of places and Alte Kunst consistently does it right... although I will admit that it had been awhile since our last visit.  This was priced at 18,80.

Bill had shrimp with pasta and vegetables.  He said the pasta was very simply prepared, with lots of garlic, a little butter, and very fresh shrimp.

I paid a few visits to the restroom.  One of the stalls lacked toilet paper, but the other one was well stocked.  And I was tickled to see that they had thoughtfully provided a range of products intended to comfort female guests.

A picture of the facade, after the sun had moved a bit.

There was a book fair going on... 

They had a lot of activities for kids, to include balloons, which we saw more than a few kids chasing down the hill past us as we ate.

I wish I read German.

And it was good to see the Rathaus looking so nice.

Food trucks... and books...

And people who climbed the tower of the church to look over the city.  We have been there and done that!

But I never get tired of the city.  I can see why we almost never visited Stuttgart when we lived in Germany the first time.

For my yarn loving friends.  

Dueling Eis cafes.  These two ice cream parlors have been in these locations for years and they never hurt for business when the weather is good.  There is always a line for both and they are directly across the street from each other.

And there is Ben & Jerry's ice cream for those who want it.

After lunch, we visited the Neckarmueller, since it had been awhile since our last visit.  Our favorite stand by biergarten was in full swing and we had no problem finding a table right by the river.

Mr. Bill enjoys a beer while gazing at the river.

Everybody was enjoying the river today.

Not long before I took this picture, we ran into a young couple and I asked them if they wanted me to take a photo of them.  I don't know if they liked the picture...  Usually, Bill is the one who gets asked to take pictures.  He doesn't have a resting bitch face like I do sometimes.

Looks like a good idea.  Bring your food and booze and enjoy the river.

As we were walking to the tunnel that would take us to our car, we ran into a young woman with two little kids who were shrieking with delight as they passed through the tunnel.  I heard her chastising them, so I gave her a big smile.  She smiled back.  I remember being a kid and enchanted by tunnels.  

These guys were going tubing.  I hadn't seen this since Texas.  

We finally ended up at Die Kelter, because I needed to whiz.  We sat in their biergarten and Bill had coffee.  I had beer.

Check out the ladybug!

The local brew is good.  This beer is made not too far from where we live.

It amazes me that my husband's contract will end in 55 days...  We could be in Italy in that time or we could still be here... or back in the USA.  No matter what happens, I was reminded today of just how much I love living in Germany.  It may turn out I will love Italy just as much, or I may get to stay here... or I may go back to the States and plot to come back.  ;-)  All I can say is that I am very pleased to have the privilege of getting to live in Europe.  And this part of Germany is a real treat to get to know.